Category Archives: Italy 2015

Venice – it’s like being in a postcard

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This is a our second visit to Venice. When we visited in 1999 it was with our children and vey much our first serious overseas trip. It was an adventure particularly as we were traveling with our kids.

We visited Venice in the middle of winter and it was cold. Venice felt dark and closed in, almost sinister. It was magical but not really as I’d imagined it.

This time its quite different. The colours of Venice in late Autumn are quite extraordinary.

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Venice is an attack on your senses. There is a new perspective with every turn. Sometimes closed in as I recalled from our previous visit and then around the corner a light filled piazza, the grand canal or a view across the water.

Basilica S Maria Gloriosa Dei Frari

Basilica S Maria Gloriosa Dei Frari

There is a church on every corner. The Basilica Saint Maria Gloriosa Sei Frari was truly spectacular. Donatello’s John the Baptist was amazing, as was the Alter to the Relics and the Monks Choir Stalls. There are no pictures, as they are not allowed.

Peggy Guggenheim Collectiom

Peggy Guggenheim Collection – The Angel of the City

Another truly special place in Venice is The Peggy Guggenheim Collection. It provides a contrast from the Venetian art, Continue reading →

Verona – A student for a day

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I arranged to have a day with a contact that I’d established at the University of Verona. It was an opportunity for me to discuss my research interests and increase my academic contacts.

Verona is just over an hour by train from Venice. I was met at the station by hosts from the University of Verona, so parted company with my favourite person so she could visit Cos (I think her mission is to visit every Cos store in Italy on this trip!) and site seeing while I went to the University.

My very generous hosts arranged a short discussion with a couple of other research fellows before we departed for a visit to a local business actively involved in the wine making process. In this region grapes are dried before processing.

Drying racks

Drying racks

From there it was an opportunity to discuss the life of a researcher in Italy and then onto a family wine company where I was able to learn about a local family business. It was interesting to hear the story given this is my particular areas of research.

It was a very worthwhile day made the better for the opportunity to meet both senior staff and fellow students. I’m quite envious of the study program that they are undertaking but on reflection perhaps not suited to a fifty something as he contemplates “what’s next”.

This is what I missed in Verona, but I’m not complaining as I had a very interesting day.

Garibaldi

Garibaldi

Roman Arena - Verona

Roman Arena – Verona

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Alone at Lake Como

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How can it be that a place like this actually shuts?

Even the trees were closed!

Even the trees are shut - Bellagio

A closed tree – Bellagio

The signs of how quiet it would be were evident when we got on the bus to our hotel. We were the only ones with suitcases.

The town we stayed in had only one restaurant open on the day we arrived, a Wednesday, and it wasn’t full for dinner!

Lake Como is truly idyllic and being able to have it largely to ourselves more than made up for the fact that pretty much everything was closed.

Our hotel

Our hotel

We took largely empty ferries between Tremzzo, Bellagio and Varenna. There were just 5 of us on the ferry to Bellagio, so it wasn’t surprising that the town was close to empty. It’s hard to imagine that only a couple of months ago it would have barely been possible to get a table at the lakeside restaurants or a room in Bellagio. During our visit they were pretty much all closed, a ghost town, just a chilling wind whipping down the narrow streets. We travelled onto Varenna, where there was a little more activity, including a delightful little bar, where we were able to shelter from the biting wind and have a pizza and a glass of red.

Bellagio

Bellagio

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We decided on a day trip to Como on our third day, Friday. Unless we wanted a dawn start, Continue reading →

So,  how do you order a coffee?

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Duomo - Milan

Duomo – Milan

One of the joys of Italy is coffee, particularly if you know how to order it!

After two days my desire for a decent coffee has seen me get

  • an Americano, when I wanted a long black
  • a glass of white wine, when I wanted a white coffee
  • an espresso because my favourite person couldn’t get the waiter to understand macchiato.

All of this is of course our fault because we can’t speak Italian and when we try the results are hilarious.

However, the last straw was making a dinner reservation last night for two “due”, to which the restaurant  queried whether my booking was for “three” or “twelve”. Clearly I have some work to do!

In frustration, I have now downloaded the Google Translate App which has been successful in me being able to ask where the toilet (gabinetto) was and actually making them understand! This is progress, Continue reading →

We saw elephants and much more 

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So after 3 days in Sri Lanka I definitely want to come back. It wasn’t even on our wishlist until it was suggested by the travel agent as a stopover.

Colombo is a bustling city. You take your life in your hands (many do!) walkng across the road. There are cars, tuk tuks, buses and bikes stretched across the road. It seems the road markings are only for decoration. It’s a form of organised chaos. This is definitely not a place to get your international drivers license out hire a car. You’d be taking you and others lives in your hands.

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We packed plenty into our short stay.

Friday afternoon Drinks at the historic nd recently renovated Galle Face Hotel and walk on the beach at Galle Face. On a bright hot sunny day this was pretty special and a far cry from drinks at our local (albeit very pleasant bar).
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We searched for a tuk tuk for the return trip to our hotel from Galle Face, looking for one with a metre as instructed by the hotel. One of the numerous security people directed us to a tuk tuk. No metre of course but the security guard told us the fee would be 200 LKR (I know, I could hear Chris De Burgh’s, “Don’t pay the ferryman, don’t even fix a price” in my head, as I was doing this!). No we weren’t interested in the one day gem sale that both the security guard and driver seemed keen for us not to miss. Just back to the hotel. As we stepped out of the tuk tuk I gave the driver what I understood to be the agreed fee 200LKR and he said no it was 300LKR. I said no and we walked off to cross the road (at the traffic lights).

One of the main reasons we were enthusiastic about taking up the suggestion of a stopover in Colombo was to see the elephants. Continue reading →